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I'm Kellie, creator of Blackboard Kitchen. I share tidbits from my world here: recipes, how-to videos, the occasional home improvement project, and funny things my students say. You can find out more about me on the "Meet Kellie" page!

Optional (not absolutely necessary and not included in the budget price)

¼ cup of red wine (for the pasta sauce)

¼ cup tequila (for the tomatillo salsa)

Grocery Notes

A few new ingredients that you may not be familiar with this week:

Tomatillos: we will use these small green tomato-like bulbs to make into salsa. They come wrapped in a husk, which you peel away from the fruit. The outside of the fruit is sticky, because the husks stick to them, so you must wash the stickiness away before using.

Figs: we will use these on our sandwiches. I had never tried fresh figs before this week and was a little apprehensive; don’t be! They were really delicious and easy to use.

Arugula: arugula is a green, lettuce-type vegetable which has a sharp, peppery (slightly spicy) taste. I don’t always love arugula and considered not using it on these sandwiches, but it was absolutely perfect and so delicious. Don’t be tempted to sub it out!!!

No-salt added canned tomatoes: did you know that the average can of tomatoes has about 20% of your daily sodium needs per serving? (There are multiple servings in each can, depending on the size.) On the other hand, no-salt added canned tomatoes have only around 4% of your daily sodium needs. Using the no-salt added variety really reduces your salt intake and allows you to season to your own taste. I always have a little bit of a tougher time finding these, but I make it a priority to seek them out every week because I know they are so much better for us.

Butternut squash: you’ll buy this squash whole. Look for it in the produce section. It is sold by the pound: it was $1.49 per pound at Sunflower last week, so I made sure to weigh the squashes to get one that was as close to the exact amount I needed as possible.

Manchego cheese: this is another item for our sandwiches (such exotic sandwiches!). I found the cheese at Whole Foods; I asked at the cheese counter for help finding it and they showed me where it was. It was a little pricier than I was anticipating: about $7 for a big wedge. I knew I didn’t need that much (you only need 4 oz!) and so I went and checked out their odds and ends cheese bin, which is where they put all the smaller chunks of cheese that are “leftover” after cutting up the big wedges. I found a small chunk that was exactly the size I needed and it was only $3.50. Perfect!

Pantry Items

As always, there are several pantry items that you will need and are not on this week’s grocery list. Be sure you have the following on hand: dried basil, dried parsely, dried oregano, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper flakes, garlic powder, cumin, chili powder, cayenne pepper, curry powder, canola oil, olive oil, grapeseed oil, and basalmic vinegar.